Index

Census Act of 1790

On March 1, 1790, Congress passed the Census Act and President George Washington signed it into law. It authorized U.S. Marshals to ask 6 questions at each household for the purpose of collecting population data. It wasn't until 1830 that a pre-designed form was printed and used by census takers; prior to that the paper and form were supplied by each marshal.

On the first Monday in August, 1790, Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson supervised the census-taking in the original 13 States, plus the districts of Kentucky, Maine, and Vermont, and the Southwest Territory (Tennessee).

NEW! Census Data Visualization Gallery

Weekly the Census Bureau will present a different graphic view of census information, starting with population (decennial census) information and branching out to visualize the variety of statistics gathered by the Bureau.

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United States Census Information

In the United States the Census Bureau collects information about people and the economy. Title 13 and Title 26 of the U.S. Code give the Census Bureau authority to gather this information for the purposes of determining the distribution of Congressional seats to states, making decisions about community services, distributing federal funds to local, state, and tribal governments, and to provide a search of confidential records for Social Security, passport, legal and other information needs.